Whether you want to become a medical insurance consultant or simply want to advance in your current career as a health benefit consultant, there is a training program to fit your needs. In order to get the most out of your career in the health insurance consulting industry you need to have the proper certification and up-to-date training.

As you look to secure health insurance consultants education and training, keep the following in mind:

1. There are different training and licensing requirements for practicing health insurance consulting in each state.

2. Health insurance consulting industry workshops are a great way to keep your team's skill set fresh.

3. Seminars and continuing education classes are great training options for career advancement in health insurance consulting.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Get licensed to become a professional health insurance consultant

If you aren't already licensed to practice health insurance consulting, it's the first step you will need to accomplish. Health insurance consultants require similar training and certification to brokers and agents. Licensing rules vary from state to state, so it is important to find classes in the state in which you plan to practice.

I recommend: ABTrainingCenter.com provides a comprehensive selection of consulting training programs by state. You can narrow your search by online, self-study or classroom courses. Go to the Kaplan Financial website to find the healthcare insurance consulting licensing program for your state and register for both online and classroom courses.

Keep up with the latest trends in medical insurance consulting with professional training workshops

A great way to update you and your team's consulting skills is to attend or arrange on-site training workshops. Periodic refresher courses will keep you sharp and on top of the latest developments in the industry.

I recommend: Attend the "Hands On" Medical Claims Training workshop from Schwabacher Health Insurance Consulting. LTC Consultants offers an on-site training workshop that covers the specifics of long-term care insurance consulting.

Advance your career as a health benefit consultant through seminars and continuing education classes

Even a seasoned healthcare insurance consultant can benefit from extra training. If you want to give your career a boost and become an attractive candidate for advancement, attend professional seminars or sign up for continuing education classes.

I recommend: Register for the Controlling Healthcare Costs seminar from S. M. Snow & Associates. The company's head, Scott Snow, has over 12 years of experience training medical insurance consultants. The AHIP Center for Insurance Education and Professional Development from America's Health Insurance Plans is a great resource for continuing education credit courses for health benefit consultants.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Supplement your health insurance consultants education and training with subscriptions to top insurance industry publications such as American Agent and Broker.

Hiring a health insurance consultant can help you make informed decisions about your company’s medical insurance coverage.

Healthcare consulting is a relatively new field. It began as a way to give companies advice on health insurance while maintaining no ties to different insurance carriers. A health benefit consultant will analyze your company’s needs and give you advice on the lowest cost and best insurance plan available.

1. Find health insurance consultants that operate in your area. They should have a familiarity with the different insurance plans which offer coverage in your state.

2. Provide the medical insurance consultant information about your business and employees. Health benefit consultants will need demographic information about the employees to give you quotes on different benefits packages.

3. Hire the health insurance consulting firm to secure the medical insurance plan for your business and provide underwriting services.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Locate health insurance consultants online

Since health benefits consulting is a new field, you may have difficulty finding a medical insurance consulting firm in your area. Combat this issue by working with a health insurance consultant online.

I recommend: You can use online healthcare insurance consulting tools on the site BuyerZone to help you find the best price and package for your company’s insurance plan. After filing out a short query form, the site will return medical insurance plans available in your area.

Submit a proposal form to a healthcare consulting firm

Once you find a health benefit consultant you wish to work with, you need to provide them with basic info about your company and employees. The medical insurance consultant will use the demographics to present you with a benefits package.

I recommend: Fill out the healthcare consultant proposal form on the Mass Marketing Insurance Consultants website. Give the company preferences regarding deductible, copays and optional benefits to get the most detailed proposal returned to you.

Allow the medical insurance consultant to implement the company's chosen policy

Health insurance consultants do more than just research different insurance policies. They'll also secure the policy for your company and communicate with your employees to let them know about the benefits program.

I recommend: Although Healthcare Benefits bases their firm out of Texas, they do extend their services to 20 other states in the United States. Hire the insurance consultants to secure your medical insurance plan, communicate it to employees and then assist with any claim problems your group may encounter.

Tips & Tactics

Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

• •  Remember to research the healthcare consulting firm well before hiring them. Certain companies receive bonuses from health insurance companies as a way to influence their recommendations.

Whether you're a business owner who is interested in setting up group health insurance for your employees or an individual who is between jobs and needs information about short-term coverage, knowing the key terms for the services provided by health insurance consultants will be beneficial to you. There are many options for health insurance coverage, and it can be confusing to choose the best plan so take the time to learn key terms so you will be informed when you work with a health insurance consultant.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Individual health insurance

Since many people don't receive health insurance from employers, individual health insurance plans give them the coverage they need in case of emergencies or hospital stays. Health insurance consultants offer quotes and comparisons of individual health insurance plans to help their clients find what best fits their needs.

I recommend: Review the information about individual health insurance services provided by health insurance consultants Moran Insurance and Financial Solutions.

Group health insurance

Group health insurance is health insurance coverage for businesses with two or more employees. There are many group health insurance plans available so it can be confusing to know which one best meets the needs of an organization. A health insurance consultant will help employers find the group health insurance coverage that meets their requirements.

I recommend: Learn about the group health insurance services provided by Mass Marketing Insurance Consultants.

Short-term health insurance

Short-term health insurance is coverage that lasts for a short period of time. These types of health insurance plans are ideal for individuals who are unemployed or face a temporary lapse in insurance coverage since they can receive the same coverage for themselves and their families as they would with regular health insurance. Health insurance consultants will help individuals find the short-term health insurance plans that will provide the coverage they need.

I recommend: Read the information about short-term health insurance at Health Insurance Finders.

Long-term care insurance

Long-term care insurance is for individuals who suffer from chronic health conditions, including arthritis, stroke or heart disease. Since these individuals may require assisted-living facilities or nursing homes to treat their conditions, long-term care insurance offers coverage tailored specifically to their needs. A health insurance consultant will advise families and loved ones about which long-term care insurance is best for them.

I recommend: Learn about long-term health insurance from the health insurance consultants at Long Term Care Quote.

Health insurance for self-employed

Many health insurance consultants offer plans for individuals who are self-employed. Without health insurance coverage, those who are self-employed risk not only the health of themselves and their families, but the possibility of losing their businesses due to the costs of care. Health insurance consultants tailor plans for self-employed individuals to meet their needs so they can receive health coverage without risking the financial stability of their businesses.

I recommend: Read about health insurance plans for individuals who are self-employed at Health-Insurance.

Medicare Supplement insurance

Medicare Supplement insurance is for individuals who receive Medicare benefits but who need procedures not covered by Medicare. Medicare Supplement insurance helps individuals pay for such things as prescriptions and out-of-pocket health-care costs. Since there are several plans of Medicare Supplement insurance, a health insurance consultant will help individuals find the plan that is right for them.

I recommend: Visit Mutual of Omaha to learn about Medicare Supplement insurance.

Because a business of nearly any size is often responsible for providing health care insurance to employees, or when a business is in the medical field dispensing health care solutions, health insurance consultants are a good resource. A health benefit consultant or medical insurance consultant can show a company how to manage its health care responsibilities without breaking the bank. As a result, health benefit consultants and healthcare consulting firms are much prized within the medical field and beyond, where boards and leaders continue to mull over how best to provide benefits for workers.

A business that needs to look into working with health insurance consultants or doing any kind of evaluation on health insurance consulting can take a look at a wide variety of pages for info on how to go about setting up collaborative projects to address health care needs. Web readers can find health insurance consultants news and trends:

1. For finding health insurance consultant groups to work with on any new initiative aimed at expanding, upgrading, or providing for new groups of workers, under an established need that has been identified.

2. Figuring out how to save money in administrating a benefits program or similar operation within a company.

3. Evaluating internal programs that may include health care such as blood draws, free health screens or any other health care service.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Use public web agency pages to get info on health insurance consultants

One way to read up on the use of health insurance consultants for the business community is through 'agency or association' web pages. These pages may be run by a trade organization, or a public service group dedicated to providing information online.

I recommend: Find articles on trends in health insurance consultants at KaiserNetwork.org. Find out more from the American Association of Health Care Consultants.

Read business blogs related to health insurance consultants and health benefits consulting

Another way to get informed is through helpful blog and web venue resources giving the perspective of a business operator looking for health insurance consultants and health care options. These kinds of resources can give businesses a look at what others are doing to manage high health care costs with good council or savvy research.

I recommend: Women in Consulting provides info from an independent small business source on how to get health insurance consultants for a budding enterprise. Find more at this Health Business Blog.

Look for other sources of info on health insurance consultants

There are many other links on the web regarding health insurance consultants. Look for news that will illuminate how today's companies are planning for tomorrow by navigating the choppy waters of providing health care for employees in a burdened system.

I recommend: Check out American Medical News for more on health insurance consultants and what they are doing within the general health care industry. Or get reviews on health insurance consultants through the Better Business Bureau.